Isolation
by Azzandra
Summary: What seems like a perfectly ordinary and predictable mission suddenly turns horribly complicated for SG1, as per usual. A missing Stargate, a previously unknown Goa'uld and a planet strangely out of the loop. Read
1. Chapter 1: That Horrible Smell

The probe footage from P5X-487 was satisfying, if not downright encouraging. The Stargate was inside a building, in a room full of various objects, strewn over several tables. It looked like some kind of restauration room, indicating a civilisation close to Earth's technology level, though hard to establish just how close.

The temperature held steady at 18 centigrades, the atmosphere was breathable, there was minimal, downright negligible, levels of radiation, and even though the room was dark, this was most likely because the room had no windows, rather than because it could have been abandoned.

All in all, SG-1 was suited up and ready to go in one hour.

---

The first thing Daniel did upon passing through the Gate was sneeze. There was an overwhelming smell in the room, something akin to pine needles and possibly some sickeningly sweet fruit.

"Well, looks like these people haven't invented air conditioning yet," Jack commented displeased.

Daniel sneezed again, frantically searching for a napkin. As the light from the Stargate disappeared, SG-1 turned on their flashlights.

There was complete silence. Sam suggested this may be because it was night on the planet. Jack suggested this might be because strange aliens might have killed everyone. Considering their past experiences, both possibilities were equally likely.

There was no time for debate, however, as the distinct sound of a door being unlatched sent the team scattering for hiding places. Luckily, the tables throughout the room were all rather large and solid, enough so to hide even Teal'c.

Daniel tried very hard to sneeze, but he seemed to have hidden very near the source of the smell in the room, which he assumed was an open bottle containing a translucid green liquid, right on top of the table under which he hid. He sneezed one last time before he door was pushed open.

Peering from their respective hiding places, each member could see the person entering the room.

She was an old woman, though not very much so. Her hands were wrinkled all over, but her hair was still a steady shade of black, albeit with quite a few stubborn strands of white, and her face had a youthful energy to it. She was also wearing glasses (small and round), which was always a good sign as to a planet's technological level.

She was dressed in a white shirt and another black, vest-like garment ove that, as well as a pair of worn trousers. She shuffled into the room, her attention completely absorbed into the journal in her hand. She turned a knob near the wall, and a series of glass tubes around the room burst briefly, then settled into steady flames.

She was nearly halfway across the room when she raised her gaze to look at the Stargate... and saw the MALP. She gasped and dropped the journal, placing a hand over her chest.

Fearing the poor woman might have a heart attack, Sam slowly rose from her hiding place.

"It's okay--"

"Who ARE you?"

"We're peaceful explorers! We came through the Stargate," and she pointed to the object in question. "We mean you no harm."

The old woman looked downright mistrustful.

"Did you say 'we'?" she asked skeptically.

Jack saw this as his cue to intervene. Rising up from under the table, he put on his best "friendly face" and waved.

"Yep, hi there, nice to meet you."

The woman flinched again, now looking almost insulted.

"I'm Col. Jack O'Neill, that's Major Carter, Dr. Jackson and Teal'c."

As he pointed to each member of the team, the woman crossed her hands and looked at him over her glasses.

"I'm matric Orva from the Great School of Devowah, and YOU are tresspassing!"

"Ooookay..." Jack raised his eyebrows at the woman's straightforwardness. "Did we mention we're from another planet?"

"We're sorry," Daniel interjected, then sneezed. "We had no idea we were tresspassing."

"You're inside a locked room," matric Orva retorted dryly. "On this planet, locked rooms are off limits. Is it not the same where you come from?"

Daniel winced at her harsh tone. "I see you don't believe us."

"Of course I don't. What you call 'Stargate' is an old relic, possibly predating the First Ages. You can not possibly tell me it's--" Orva stopped suddenly and took a long, hard look at the Gate. "The Pass of the Worlds?"

"Uhh... Yes, if that's what you call it," Daniel cleared his throat. "It's a nearly instantaneous way of travelling between different planets."

"Yes... Yes! The Pass of the Worlds!" Orva approached the Stargate and wrung her hands excitedly. "Oh, how fortunate! You see, it was considered lost after the goddess Bendis died. We considered it might be hidden somewhere in the Lower Lands! We traced it to the first human settlements-- oh, it's quite amazing. It's said our ancestor were first brough through the Pass of the Worlds! This is wonderful! My colleagues at the Great School will be-- oh, but this is wonderful!"

"Yes, well, your ancestors might have been brought here from Earth," Daniel nodded, getting caught up in Orva's excitement.

"Earth?" Orva repeated, her hands now shaking.

"That's the planet we came from," Jack quipped.

"Then you must tell me all about it! You!" Orva pointed to Daniel. "You seem to be a scholar yourself! Tell me all you know!"

"Easy, Daniel, she might keel over from the excitement," Jack whispered in Daniel's direction.

Orva promptly made her way to Jack and smacked him overhead. Daniel and Sam recoiled, surprised. Teal'c merely raised an eyebrow.

"Ow!"

"I may be old, but that doesn't mean I'm deaf!" she said, waving her finger in Jack's face. "So don't you dare take me overfoot!"

"Overfoot?" he mouthed pathetically, trying to keep in mind that she was only a defenseless old woman.

"Overfoot! It means to patronise!"

Orva waved her finger some more in a universal spectacle of old woman rage, then turned to Daniel again.

"Let's move to my study. The smell of vroina in this room is enough to cause headaches," she said finally.

"Ah, yes, we were going to ask about the smell. What is it?" Sam asked.

"Vroina. It kills vermin. Not dangerous to humans except in much larger quantities," Orva replied, adjusting her glasses.

"But not MUCH larger, I'll bet," Jack muttered while they all followed Orva out of the room.

The hallways were large and cold. There were no glass tubes with flames burning inside here, but ordinary electrical instalations along the walls.

"But tell me, why come here?" Orva asked.

"We travel through the Stargate to many planets," Sam explained, "searching for allies and weapons against the Goa'uld."

"Never heard of them," Orva shrugged.

"Well, we can still negociate a treaty and... and open trading relationships between our respective planets," Sam continued.

"Oh, you'll have to go to the proper authorities for that."

"Great! Who would that be?" Jack asked, finally thinking it safe again to talk.

"Our goddess, Delmis," Orva replied.


	2. Chapter 2: Kiv'ac

Orva continued to chatter happily while slowly shuffling down the hall.

"We found it buried, of course, that was to be expected, but it took quite a bit of ingenuity to discover where-- see, there's not much writing left from the First Ages, so we had to go by local folklore. What we did was..."

"Okay, Daniel, what can you tell us about this Delmis character?" Jack asked in a hushed voice.

"Nothing. There's no Earth deity that goes by that name."

"Teal'c?"

"I have no knowledge of any Goa'uld named such either, O'Neill."

"Although..." Daniel muttered. "Orva mentioned Bendis."

"And...?"

"And Bendis was the Thracian goddess of the moon, magic... fertility. Not much is known about her."

"So... good goddess?" Jack inquired, though feeling that the question was rather pointless. Good Goa'uld were about as common as... well, jackalopes.

"Possibly. But like I said, not much is--"

"--Known about her. Yeah. I got that. Teal'c?"

"I have heard only stories of a System Lord named Bendis," the Jaffa replied. "All that I know of her is that she disappeared one day, seemingly without reason. It was assumed that her rival, a Goa'uld named Zamolxis, was responsible for this. However..."

"Ooh, boy, I don't like the sound of that 'however'."

"However," Teal'c continued, undaunted by Jack's comment, "when she disappeared, her Jaffa Guard also went missing. It is possible she was forced into hiding as her conflict with Zamolxis escalated."

"It's possible this is where she fled to, sir," Sam interjected as well. "According to the coordinates, this planet is very far away from Goa'uld controlled space."

"Great! So Bendis is dead, which means that this... Delmis might have killed her and taken over. Great." Jack grumbled to himself, displeased. Another perfectly fine alliance, ruined by the Goa'uld.

"That's assuming Delmis is Goa'uld," Daniel suddenly commented.

"'Our goddess'? Hello? Any of this getting to you?" Jack waved his hand.

"Yes, but, in many cultures, rulers are often represented as gods. Orva, would you mind telling me..."

Orva looked over her shoulder. "Yes?"

"How long has Delmis ruled for?"

"Oh, nearly three thousand seasons, that we know of."

"Right, and a season is how many days?"

"182 days."

"So that would make it... almost 1500 years." Daniel seemed almost dejected by the realisation.

"Great, so it's either a Goa'uld, or the next Metuselah." Jack's derisive comment prompted only a sigh from Daniel.

They finally got to Orva's study, a room that would have seemed much larger, if not for the many bookshelves that padded the walls.

"I teach History at the Great School," she said as explanation.

"Orva, we need you to understand something," Sam started.

"Yeah, Delmis? She's not a goddess," Jack said.

"She's not even human, in fact," Daniel explained. "She's an alien. She brought your people here through the Stargate, as slaves."

Orva merely perked an eyebrow, with a perfectly calm expression, as if saying, 'I don't understand, would you elaborate?'

"So... basically, she's bad," Jack added.

Orva, for her part, looked not the slightest bit convinced.

"You make quite harsh judgement, considering you are new to this planet. I assure you, Our Lady Delmis is nothing if not benevolent." The old woman crossed her arms; she looked absolutely implaccable.

"Ever notice this approach almost never works?" Jack muttered.

"But aren't your people afraid of her?" Daniel insisted.

"Why would they be afraid? She is our protector," Orva replied.

"Okay, we're not getting through to her," Jack concluded. "Orva, would you at least mind not telling anyone we're here?"

"What do you have in mind, O'Neill?" Teal'c asked.

"A little recon. It's a big planet, we'll find someone who wants saving."

"Oh!" Orva exclaimed, suddenly remembering something. "I already sent inquiries to Vantage Point!"

There was a moment of silence. SG-1 simultaneously got the feeling that it was not a good thing, though they were unsure what she meant.

"What's Vantage Point?" Sam finally asked, voicing everybody's question.

"It's Lady Delmis' palace," Orva replied. "It's on a high bluff overlooking the entire city of Devowah. Our reliquary has strict instructions to report any object that might look like the Pass of the Worlds. She will undoubtably send someone."

There was a distinct metallic sound, coming from the hallway. Orva wrung her hands fretfully.

"Ah! That must be a representative from Vantage Point! I will go now. Stay here!"

Matric Orva left the room quite suddenly, with a speed not expected to be possible, considering her age.

Jack cleared his throat. "Okay, so let me get this straight. Delmis lost the Stargate?"

"It would appear so," Teal'c answered stoically.

"How do you lose a freakin' Stargate?" Jack burst.

"Maybe she came by ship," Daniel suggested. "Or there was a landslide, or an earthquake."

"Or Bendis buried it to escape pursuit and forgot to tell Delmis where it was located," added Sam.

"Okay, okay." Jack held his hand up to silence them. "But still... That's pretty darn careless," he added weakly. "Hey, anyone interested to see who the nice goddess sent?"

He pointed his gun at the door.

"That might not be a good idea..." But Daniel's words were lost on Jack, who cracked the door and peered out in the hallway.

The light was dim. There was no sound, except those made by Orva and the mysterious representative as they came down the hall, probably going to the room where the Stargate was located.

"Must be quite important to Lady Delmis," Orva was saying, "if she sent the First Prime himself for this task."

Jack was immediatly caught in this conversation. "Hey, you might want to hear this," he whispered to the rest of the team.

"Yes, matric Orva," the First Prime replied. "As a matter of fact, the Mistress was quite insistant we transport the object to Vantage Point as soon as possible."

Orva stopped, conveniently enough near the door where Jack was eavesdropping.

"Oh, my! Then it's true! It IS the Pass of the Worlds!" she exclaimed, sounding as suprised as she was when SG-1 told her the same. "We suspected, but to have comfirmation! I'll get some students from the Great School, we'll have it ready for transport first thing in the morning!"

"Lady Delmis appreciates your enthusiasm," the Jaffa replied gruffly, though not disrespectfully, "However, she has given out strict instructions. We are to arrange for its transportation ourselves. Until then, it is to be guarded closely."

Jack heard Daniel nearly choke in suprise. If they allowed the Gate to be taken to a Goa'uld's palace, it was unlikely they'd ever get home again.

"Certainly, Master Kiv'ac," Orva bobbed her head, sounding thoroughly disappointed. "We were intending to study it--"

"There is no need to study it," Kiv'ac interrupted. "Lady Delmis knows what it does and how it is to be used. But there is a matter in which you may help. Has the object been the source of any... unusual activities?"

The silence that followed as thick and suffocating. 'Don't tell anyone, Orva,' Daniel pleaded in his mind.

"Well," the woman started, rather confused. "There... there was this... one thing."

SG-1 waited tensely, unconciously clutching their weapons.

"What thing in particular?" Kiv'ac pressed.

Orva prepared to answer.


End file.
